1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of medical tools, specifically to a cutting device used to obtain uniformly thick slices of cartilage from a costal (rib) cartilage sample.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Costal cartilage is becoming increasingly popular as a graft source for facial reconstruction. However, carving methods have not changed in decades, and continue to primarily rely upon detailed maneuvers with a scalpel. There are currently very few mechanical devices for shaping costal cartilage and the accuracy and precision of manual methods leave much to be desired.
Providing for a relatively abundant supply of cartilage, the costal margin is the only practical option for autogenous cartilage grafts when auricular and septal cartilage are depleted or if significant cartilage is required for extensive framework reconstruction. However, grafts harvested from peripheral regions of costal cartilage have the potential disadvantage of warping after graft placement. This undesirable effect is minimized and theoretically eliminated by obtaining balanced cross-sections from the central core of the rib. Such considerations demonstrate that the harvesting technique critically affects the shape dynamics and outcome of costal cartilage grafts, particularly in applications such as reconstructive rhinoplasty.
Techniques for carving cartilage have had modest progress over the past several decades. In the operating room, the scalpel remains the preferred instrument of choice. However, this method is hindered by imprecise and tune-consuming maneuvers. Obtaining flat grafts of uniform thickness using a scalpel requires skill and expertise, especially for thinner slices such as spreader grafts used for rhinoplasty. The ability to harvest uniform cartilage specimens is important because these specimens have a wide range of applications in nasal reconstruction.
Several cartilage cutting devices have been described or alluded to in the literature. Generally, these devices adhere to a common design of two parallel blades that are separated by a specific distance using a spacer at both ends. The piece of rib is first cut to a length that is no greater than the distance between the spacers. Then, the double-bladed device is pushed through the rib segment, producing a slice having approximately the same thickness as the spacer. Specifically, one device employs a guillotine-type apparatus fashioned from a traditional paper cutter lever utilizing two parallel blades. These blades are then swung down to section a rib segment. Other iterations include a cartilage cutting guillotine using razor blades in conjunction with securing the rib with gentle compression in a vise mechanism. Still other examples have adapted the guillotine concept by using four parallel blades in order to obtain a central slice and two peripheral slices. Although these devices offer a simple and rapid cutting approach alternative to the traditional scalpel, the accuracy of these devices is suspect at best.
What is needed is a simple device and method for cutting costal cartilage into well defined, uniformly thick user defined segments that are suitable for various delicate reconstructive surgeries.